The Price of Us
by littlemissemma
Summary: When Snow is running from Regina, she decides that it would be best to give Emma to a ship captain named Liam. She grew up there, and after two years of Liam being gone, his brother returns. There is an instant connection. Emma is just so closed off, and he swears to himself to break her walls. (Captain swan))
1. Chapter 1

_"Do I have to go, mama?" She asked frowning, her tiny face scrunched in displeasure. She balled her petite hands onto fists and sighed._

 _"Yes, Emma, I'm afraid you do. You'll be good, won't you? You're strong, baby, you'll get through this. And, when it's over, daddy and I'll come get you," She tried to calm the 8 year old down._

 _"I'll be good, I promise. Promise me you'll come get me okay?" She smiled determinedly at her mother. Her mother took in a shaky breath and pulled her in for a hug._

 _"I promise, Emma."_

She awoke from the dream and sighed, her mothers words still fresh on her mind.

 _I promise_

Such silly words, they were. She knew her mother was never coming to get here, yet she still remembered those words like she had been told them yesterday. She swung her legs over the side of her hammock, pulling her hair into a ponytail. She was looking around the room when she heard a knock at the door.

"Emma, are you awake?" She heard Smees voice ask her. She snickered and yawned

"Yes, Mr Smee," she called out to him.

"Remember, he is coming today. Liam would want you to look your best and _act_ your best." She smiled sadly at the mention of Liam.

"I know, and I'm 19. I'll act appropriate, don't worry." Liam's brother was coming back after 6 years. She didn't remember much about him, just that he was an okay kid. They were friends, until he left to join he navy when he was 15. She put on her most appealing dress and walked out the door.

"Remember what Liam said, Smee," she warned him and grinned.

"What in particular?" He asked her curiously.

"Even when Killian comes back, I'm still captain." She smirked at him and he smiled.

"Of that I have no doubt, he wouldn't want it any other way," He nodded to her, sighing.

"I'll bring him back here, alright, ma'am?" He clarified with her. She nodded curtly and leaned against the mast. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. She missed Liam, but she knew she didn't miss him as much as his brother probably did. She heard footsteps behind her and she smiled and turned around. She saw Smee board the ship with a tall, handsome man.

As Killian walked onto the ship, he looked at Emma's small frame. She appeared too small, but she looked mighty and proud. She was gorgeous and it surprised him. He didn't really remember her, and he didn't think she looked like _that_ when they were children.

"Here she is, sir," Smee told him with a grin. "Remember, sir, fair warning, she will kick your ass before you can blink. She is most definitely the captain." He whispered to him. Emma tilted her head slightly and grinned.

"So, you're the mighty Killian Jones. You've certainly changed since we were children," she smirked at him, looking at his ocean blue eyes. He returned the grin.

"I could say the same of you, love." He informed her, looking at her luscious blonde hair. She rolled her eyes.

"Well, you're welcome to stay as long as you'd like, assuming you want to," she told him politely.

"Aye, I'll likely stay a few weeks, I got kicked out of the navy," he explained. She nodded and gestured around her, walking past him.

"I'd take Smees warning wisely," she whispered as she passed. He looked at her with amusement and she winked at him.

"Don't bother me, I've things to do. Killian, do make yourself at home. Liam would want you to," she smiled sympathetically at him and shook her head. He tensed at his brothers name. He sighed and pulled out his rum flask.

He sighed and smiled to himself. She was certainly going to be hard to deal with for the few weeks he was here.

Emma opened the door to her cabin and winced. She hadn't expected him to be so-

No. She was not going there. Not now, not ever. She rolled her eyes at herself and looked into the mirror. She sighed heavily and plopped down on her bed. Yawning, she closed her eyes. She wasn't asleep, just laying and lost in thought. And that's how she stayed, eyes closed, for a few hours.

After a while, she heard a knock on the door. She sat up and walked to the door.

"Who is it?" She asked in a tired voice. she tried to fix the way she sounded, and succeeded. She cleared her throat and laid a palm on the door.

"It's me, Captain, I was just wondering how long we were going to be docked?" Smee asked her curiously. She tilted her head and thought for a moment.

"We should be leaving in a moment. Why?" She walked away from the door, putting on a leather jacket.

"Oh, well, Killian was wondering but he wanted us to ask." She smirked and rolled her eyes. She walked back to the door, opening it and smiling at smee.

"Let's go then, shall we?" She gestured to up above the lower deck. He nodded vigorously. She climbed up the ladder and stifled a yawn, walking to the helm. Once they set sail, Killian came over to her.

"I have no intention of doing so," He said after a minute. She looked at him curiously.

"Of doing what?" She asked him wearily. He shrugged.

"Taking your place as captain. You do it fine all on your own. Which I was skeptical of until about an hour ago, your crew was telling stories of how you saved them and," he paused, looking down. "And Liam. Which is also what I came up here for. To thank you." He told her simply. She gazed at him, making his heart pound.

"For what? He saved me countless times, I was returning the favor. And besides," she looked like she didn't know if she should continue. "I couldn't save him when it really mattered anyways," the guilt was etched in her features. He looked at her emerald green eyes and sighed.

"It wasn't your fault, love. He was killed during battle, which is for sure what he would have wanted." He tried to comfort her. He knew that pained look on her face all too well.

"Well, anyways, it doesn't matter now, he wouldn't want us to live in the past, so I try as hard as I can not to." She told him and looked back ahead. She looked determined and he smiled in spite of himself. He had been in a state of loathing in the last two years since Liam died, and it was nice to have someone who sort of understood. He wasn't there to say goodbye. He could have been, but he wasn't. He was dead and Killian didn't get to see his brother before he died. He was suddenly grateful for Emma's presence. He was glad Liam had someone there, even if it wasn't him.

"Where did you come from, swan?" He asked her suddenly. He saw her tense and grit her teeth.

"Wouldn't you like to know," she rolled her eyes and didn't make eye contact with him. He sighed.

"An innocent question, really," he told her. "Although i understand if it's painful to talk about." He informed her. This time, she did look at him.

"If I told you, I'd never hear the end of it." She joked. He didn't smile, instead, he frowned.

"Ah, love, I see. How about I'll make you a deal. If you tell me I promise I won't tell the crew, and in turn I'll ask no more personal questions." She sighed and nodded.

"If you tell the crew, I'll gut you. Remember, I'm still captain." She warned. "I was a princess," she told him simply. "I don't remember specifics, but my parents gave me to Liam because the wanted to protect me or something." He waited for her to continue. She didn't.

"If you call me princess," she started. He laughed.

"Your secrets safe with me, darling." She looked at him for a moment before nodding. He could see that. Her, being a princess. It seemed fitting with the way she looked. But, he thought her behavior resembled more of a pirate. They sailed for a while longer, until they docked at a corner of the enchanted forest.

"Care to join me for a drink?" He asked her, reading her expression carefully. she shook her head and sighed.

"Not tonight, but you can go," she told him. He nodded.

"Right well, I'll be back in a few hours," he stated simply. She nodded a little and walked down below deck.

About three hours later, when Killian came back, drunk off his ass, Emma was looking at the sky.

"Hello, love," he greeted her. She could smell the rum in his breath, and it made her uncomfortable. She smiled tightly at him and continued to look at the stars.

"Hello," she whispered.

"What are you up to, Swan?" He asked her curiously. She motioned at the sky.

"Watching the stars," She mumbled. He nodded.

"I used to do that," he looked at the stars. He pointed to a constellation and smiled. "That's Cygnus the Swan," she rolled her eyes and smiled.

"I know that," she told him. He stared at her with a deep look. She shifted and she knew that he was just drunk, but it still made her heart race. His gaze was soft, yet intense, and he looked like he was searching the very depts of her soul. His gaze moved down to her lips, and she tore her gaze away from him and looked at the sky again. He continued to stare at her lips. He felt a longing, and he honestly just wanted to kiss her, but he knew it was irrational and that he was drunk. Still, he hadn't felt this in a long time, and it confused him. He certainly hadn't liked her when they were kids. But things had changed since then.

"Emma, I know I said no more personal questions, but can I ask you something?" She hesitated, then nodded.

"Why don't you try and find your family?" He asked her. She shrugged.

"They aren't my family. Why, are you trying to get me to give you the title of captain!" She asked with an eyebrow raised.

"wouldn't dream of it, beautiful." He purred. She ignore him and looked around. She looked at him, only to find he was staring at her.

"Don't call me that," she warned him.

"Darling, you must know it's true, you _are_ beautiful. I lack the understanding of how you fail to see it," He gave her a yearning look. He took a strand of her golden hair in his fingers. She sucked in a breath, and tried to pull back.

"Emma," he whispered. She glanced at the ground, pressing a hand to his chest.

"Killian, your drunk," she started.

"Not drunk enough to not know what I want." He continued to whisper to her. She was shaking and shook her head. She was visibly distraught, but he refused to stop trying.

"Please, killian, you aren't thinking straight." She told him. He shook his head and sighed, dropping his hand.

"Whatever the lady insists," He kissed her hand, and gazed at her. She leaned up and kissed him softly, he was utterly shocked. He kissed her back, stroking his hand through her hair. She pulled back and yawned.

"Goodnight Killian," she walked out of view. He smiled and sighed.

This was going to be a long night.


	2. Chapter 2

Emma breathed a sigh of relief when she stepped through her door. Why did she kiss him? She didn't know the answer. She just, _did_ and it had been nice, but she knew she couldn't let this progress into anything. He was going to leave, he _had_ to leave, in a few weeks. So, until then, she knew she had to do everything she could to make sure she doesn't get attached.

/

 _"Papa?" Emma cried_ _out, rushing to her fathers side._

 _"David!" Snow exclaimed exasperatedly. His limp body was unresponsive, and Emma didn't quite know what was happening, for she was very young. She also didn't know if he was going to be alright. All she knew was that he wasn't dead. That's all she knew, all she would ever know. Snow had tears dripping down her face, and Emma, only five years old, went and hugged her sobbing mother._

Emma woke up from the familiar dream and sighed looking at the dark room around her. As she fell back asleep, she knew more dreams would come

 _"Emma, are you almost ready?" Her mother asked her. She nodded sadly._

 _"Emma, sweetheart, look at me," she tore her big green eyes away from the floor and looked at her mother. She clenched her small fists and tried to stay happy looking. "Emma, baby, I love you,"_

 _"Then why do I have to go away?" She cried._

 _"Because someone is trying to hurt you, and I need to make sure you stay safe. Once I wake papa up, we will defeat the women who tries to hurt you. Then, we can come get you! But for now, you have to stay with our most trusted naval captain. He'll protect you, and he even has a brother who is near your age you can play with. You will be alright, Emma. Now, grab your bag. We need to get going,"_

Emma woke up, yet again, and yawned. It was closer to day, she knew, so she decided to get up. She stopped dead in her tracks as she remembered what had happened with Killian.

Hopefully he would remember. Either way, it was bound to be a long day.

When the sun broke through the horizon, light shades of orange and pink were strewn across the deck. Killian woke with a start, and sleepily looked around. He saw Emma at the helm, she had an intense look on her face, and she was staring into the distance.

"Sleep well?" She asked, keeping her eyes trained on the sky. He grinned. She knew he hadn't, he had slept on the deck.

"Oh, it was joyous," his grin turned into a smile and he ran his hand through his hair. He was trying to figure out what had happened last night, he didn't remember. All he remembered was kissing Emma. He looked at her in confusion, studying her alert face. She looked upset, or angry, and he didn't know why.

Gods, this would be _so_ much easier if he just remembered what happened. He strained his brain, and she glanced at him, fully understanding what his expression meant.

"You don't remember last night, do you?" She asked lightheartedly. He shook his head in embarrassment. She laughed sourly.

"Why, did something happen?" He asked her, carefully examining her facial expression. She smiled slightly.

"Not really, you just came back drunk and went to sleep," she told him. He nodded. He _knew_ they kissed.. or maybe he had dreamed it. He sighed and stood up, walking over to her.

"Are you _certain_ , love?" He whispered, her whole being seemingly tensed.

"Yes, I'm quite sure." She uttered and clenched her jaw. He leaned back, and shook his head.

"Alright, love, I'll take your word for it," He replied smoothly. She relaxed a bit.

"Where are we headed?" He asked her curiously.

"Arendelle, to see my friend." He nodded.

"who's your friend?" He looked at her blonde hair, blowing slightly in the breeze.

"Elsa." She told him. _Queen_ Elsa? He smiled and sighed, only fitting she was friends with queens, she was a princess, after all. She rolled her eyes.

"It's not that big of a deal. And no, I didn't meet her while I lived in the castle," she smiled slightly, internally cursing herself for feeling the way she did. She felt, _giddy,_ and she hated it. Or maybe she liked it. She wasn't sure yet. Maybe she was just scared. She yawned and looked at him.

"What?" She asked incredulously. He chuckled.

"Hm..." he started, looking as if he wanted to say something.

"You, Emma, are incredibly adorable when you're annoyed." Her eyes widened and she blushed. "And when you blush," he pointed out.

She cleared her throat and rolled her eyes.

"Haha, very funny. Now, I do believe you have things to do, besides pestering the captain." She told him firmly. He smiled at her demandingness, and walked away.

Smee walked up to Killian and smiled.

"She's a difficult one, isn't she?" He smiled at him sympathetically. Killian nodded.

"Aye, that she is. Has she always been like this?" He asked.

"After Liam died, she closed herself off. She had a boyfriend for a while, until he left her. Broke her heart, it did. She's been closed off ever since. Although, after Liam first died, she was meaner. Now she's a tad nicer." He explained. Killian looked at her, gaze intently staring somewhere, and he smiled.

"She's a tough lass," Smee nodded.

"She is indeed," He agreed.

"What are you two talking about?" She asked as she walked over. Smee gave her a small smile.

"Nothing, ma'am, I'll get back to work," He told her. She nodded.

"Okay then," She looked at Killian for a moment, then at Smee. She narrowed her eyes a little and smiled. "You two have fun with that," She told them and walked back to the helm. She shook her head in confusion.

"They have no business talking about me," she mumbled.

"I couldn't agree more,"


End file.
